1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a heat conducting assembly, more particularly to a heat conducting assembly for a water heater, and a method for making the heat conducting assembly.
2. Description of the Related Art
Referring to FIG. 1, a conventional water heater 1, such as a gas water heater, includes an open housing 11, a heat conducting member 12, a water pipe 13 surrounding the heat conducting member 12, and a heating unit 14 disposed within the housing 11. The water pipe 13 allows water to flow therethrough, and has inlet and outlet ends 131, 132 extending out of the housing 11. In use, the heating unit 14 directly heats the heat conducting member 12, which transfers the heat to the water pipe 13 for heating the water flowing through the water pipe 13. However, the conventional water heater 1 has the following disadvantages:
1. Since only a bottom portion of the heat conducting member 12 is heated, and since the housing 11 is an open one, the heated areas of the heat conducting member 12 are limited, and heat loss is intensified due to flow of ambient air through the water heater 1, thereby resulting in low heat transfer efficiency.
2. Given the above, the heating unit 14 must consume more heat energy in order to heat the water in the water pipe 13 up to the required temperature, thereby resulting in waste of heat energy.
3. Since the bottom portion of the heat conducting member 12 is close to the heating unit 14, the part of the water pipe 13 which is proximate to the bottom portion of the heat conducting member 12 is quickly heated, whereas the part of the water pipe 13 which is distal from the bottom portion of the heat conducting member 12 is heated slowly due to the aforesaid heat loss and low heat transfer efficiency, thereby resulting in uneven heat distribution. Consequently, the water flowing through the water pipe 13 is not heated at the same rate.